Marijuana grower sues sheriff over destroyed plants

Kaleb Young is seeking $210,000 in damages

The Coloradoan

LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. — A man suing over 42 medical-marijuana plants killed by Larimer County deputies claims investigators failed to check the state registry to confirm the plants were legal. Recent filings in the lawsuit seeking $210,000 in damages counter a request by county attorneys to get the case thrown out.

Kaleb Young, 35, was acquitted at jury trial in November 2011 after maintaining that his marijuana grow in Wellington was compliant with state medical-marijuana laws. When his plants were returned, they were worthless because deputies had cut, bagged and failed to maintain them pending the trial’s outcome, Young claims.

The ensuing lawsuit seeks damages connected with the plants, and the latest filing April 3 includes details about the investigation into the grow Young was running in 2010 when deputies began investigating. Investigators with Larimer County Sheriff’s Office had tracked down Young’s financial records, property information and utility records while conducting undercover surveillance before the raid of his Wellington grow operation and Fort Collins home in fall 2010.